[NatureNS] Crows as a Sign of Spring in Cape Breton?

Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2012 15:51:32 -0400
To: NatureNS <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca>
From: "P.L. Chalmers" <plchalmers@ns.sympatico.ca>
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         This week I heard an episode of  Stuart McLean's Vinyl 
Cafe.  The opening lines of the story entitled "Springhill"  caught 
my attention.  The story begins in Big Narrows, Cape Breton, in (I 
think) 1958. A man hears and then sees a crow, and regards it as a 
harbinger of spring.  Is this likely?

         I know that in my native Manitoba, crows are migratory, and 
it used to be the case that outside of Winnipeg, they  were not seen 
in winter.  My mother used to recall how when she was a girl growing 
up in Brandon, the sight of one was a sure sign of spring.  This has 
been changing: The Birds of Manitoba (2003) says that crows are 
"uncommon but increasing in winter in the south", and they are "among 
the earliest spring migrants to return".  It also notes that in the 
"last few decades , it has become more at home in cities and 
towns"...  With the exception of the Winnipeg Count, most CBC's in 
Manitoba report crows only in single digits.

         But were crows ever so rare in winter in Cape Breton that 
they were regarded as a sign of spring?  Tufts' Birds of Nova Scotia 
(1986) says only that they can be "uncommon to rare in interior 
wooded regions, especially in winter".  Has this been changing in 
Nova Scotia, too?

         Patricia L. Chalmers
         Halifax


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<x-tab>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</x-tab>This week
I heard an episode of&nbsp; Stuart McLean's Vinyl Cafe.&nbsp; The opening
lines of the story entitled &quot;Springhill&quot;&nbsp; caught my
attention.&nbsp; The story begins in Big Narrows, Cape Breton, in (I
think) 1958. A man hears and then sees a crow, and regards it as a
harbinger of spring.&nbsp; Is this likely?&nbsp; <br><br>
<x-tab>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</x-tab>I know
that in my native Manitoba, crows are migratory, and it used to be the
case that outside of Winnipeg, they&nbsp; were not seen in winter.&nbsp;
My mother used to recall how when she was a girl growing up in Brandon,
the sight of one was a sure sign of spring.&nbsp; This has been changing:
<u>The Birds of Manitoba </u>(2003) says that crows are &quot;uncommon
but increasing in winter in the south&quot;, and they are &quot;among the
earliest spring migrants to return&quot;.&nbsp; It also notes that in the
&quot;last few decades , it has become more at home in cities and
towns&quot;...&nbsp; With the exception of the Winnipeg Count, most CBC's
in Manitoba report crows only in single digits.<br><br>
<x-tab>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</x-tab>But were
crows ever so rare in winter in Cape Breton that they were regarded as a
sign of spring?&nbsp; Tufts' <u>Birds of Nova Scotia</u> (1986) says only
that they can be &quot;uncommon to rare in interior wooded regions,
especially in winter&quot;.&nbsp; Has this been changing in Nova Scotia,
too?<br><br>
<x-tab>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</x-tab>Patricia
L. Chalmers<br>
<x-tab>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</x-tab>Halifax<br>
<br>
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